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A Classical Chinese Garden at the US National Arboretum

The U.S. National Arboretum (USNA) is a U.S. Department of Agriculture research
and education facility for ornamental trees, shrubs, and floral plants. It
is a national center that welcomes visitors in a stimulating and aesthetically
pleasing environment. Visitors can explore the vast 446-acre landscape throughout
all seasons.

Chinaís rich flora and long history of garden development has had a profound
influence on horticulture and garden design throughout the world. Chinese classical
gardens represent a harmonious blending of man and nature. The careful balance
and blending of man-made structures, stones and rockeries, plants, water, and
art results in a beautiful place for people to enjoy, learn, and rest. The
Classical Chinese Garden at the U. S. National Arboretum will be the finest
example of a classical Chinese garden in the United States due to several factors.
It will be an originally designed garden located in an idyllic setting just
two miles from the Capitol of the United States. This garden takes the best
features of several well known gardens in the famous Chinese garden cities
of Zhangzhou, Shuzhou, and Hangzhou and incorporates them in an original design.

The garden will provide an opportunity for visitors, nationally and internationally,
to see and experience a true classical Chinese garden and learn about the culture of China.
This will be a setting for people to learn about Chinese culture and its traditional arts and
crafts of China. It will be a key location for important meetings and special events for
high-ranking officials, the business community, and organizations. At the same time,
it will be used to support the Arboretumís research programs in the development of new
and improved ornamental and floral plants.

The Classical Chinese Garden at the U.S. National Arboretum is a joint project
between the governments of the United States and China. Professor Peng Zhenhua,
well-known and respected garden designer at the Chinese Academy of Sciences,
heads the Chinese design team. The Chinese team is working closely with their
American counterparts headed by U. S. National Arboretum Director, Dr. Thomas
S. Elias. Together they are developing a concept for an outstanding Chinese
garden that will be unmatched in the Western World. The U. S. will provide
the land, site work, utilities, and plant materials for the project. The Chinese
government will provide the structures, furnishing, and labor to construct
the garden.

An 8-acre site located in the heart of the 446-acre USNA has been selected
to provide a setting for the Chinese Garden that will never be compromised
by surrounding high-rise buildings or other man-made structures. A mature pine
forest provides an idea backdrop high on a sloping hillside for the upper segments
of the Chinese garden. The lower part of this setting will feature a small
lake and the main complex of buildings. The Chinese Garden is located adjacent
to a mature dawn redwood grove and the Arboretumís extensive collection of
Asian plants.

Visitors will enjoy walking through the three main components of the Classical
Chinese Garden. The first component will be on the right side after the
entrance. This enclosed area will include a small pond and traditional Chinese
buildings with Ming- and Ching-style hardwood furniture, calligraphy and painting
scrolls on the walls. Adjacent to this building will be a traditional boat
house located on a 1.3-acre lake.

The second component will be located further down the path on the left
side. This enclosed area of the garden will include a two-story teahouse and
an exhibit hall where visitors may taste authentic Chinese tea and enjoy skillful
demonstrations of art work including painting and calligraphy. Rockeries representing
each of the four seasons will also be included in this component.

Moving down the path, visitors will enter a traditional long corridor that will take
them over the lake and into the third and largest component of the garden. This component
houses a series of pavilions designed to highlight the natural beauty and magnificent
views of the entire garden. Visitors will appreciate the large display of tree peonies
at the Peony Pavilion.

The pathway will be lined with willows as visitors walk to the Fragrance Pavilion,
where they can rest and enjoy viewing authentic Chinese goldfish. On their way to an
astonishing view of the entire garden in the Whispering Pavilion, visitors will pass
a traditional Chinese White Pagoda. From there visitors can follow the path to the
Five Pavilions for another extraordinary view of the garden.

Contributions to the Classical Chinese Garden at the USNA are tax-deductible.

We currently have two separate donation programs:

The first 100 individuals who donate $10,000 or more toward the construction of the
Classical Chinese Garden will be designated Pioneer Donors. Click here for more information.

The Charter Donors Program has three tiers of donations ranging from $1,000 to $9,999.

Silver Charter Donors: Those who donate $1,000 to $2,499 to the project will receive special recognition in a USNA publication.

Gold Charter Donors: Those who donate $2,500 to $4,999 to the project will receive special recognition in a USNA publication and an invitation to a special event to be held in the Garden during the first year of operation.

Platinum Charter Donors: Those who donate $5,000 to $9,999 to the project will receive special recognition in a USNA publication and special invitations to three special events to be held in the Garden during the first year of operation.

Names of all Charter Donors will be entered in a record book. The record book will be displayed with other historical materials in an exhibition area inside one of the main structures.
Click here for more information.

-- To donate by making a secure payment online - click this button

-- Or, you may donate directly by contacting The National Arboretum Director:

Public Law 94-129, Title VIII Sec. 890Any funds received or collected by the Secretary of Agriculture as a result of activities described in subsection A shall be retained in a special fund in the Treasury for the use and benefit of the National Arboretum as the Secretary of Agriculture considers appropriate.

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